News: Research
Read the latest news from the College of Natural Sciences at The University of Texas at Austin
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Diet Affects Men's and Women's Gut Microbes Differently
The microbes living in the guts of males and females react differently to diet, even when the diets are identical, according to a study by...
![Illustration by Marianna Grenadier and Jenna Luecke.](/sites/default/files/uploads/images/default/gut_microbes-rectangle700x420.jpg)
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Mutation Stops Worms From Getting Drunk
Neuroscientists at The University of Texas at Austin have generated mutant worms that do not get intoxicated by alcohol, a result that could lead to...
![A visual comparison of a sober and an intoxicated worm. Image courtesy of Jon Pierce-Shimomura.](/sites/default/files/uploads/images/default/drunk-sober-worms-humans.jpg)
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Improved Method for Isotope Enrichment Could Secure a Vital Global Commodity
Researchers at The University of Texas at Austin have devised a new method for enriching a group of the world’s most expensive chemical commodities, stable...
![An artist's rendering of the MAGIS Device (magnetically activated and guided isotope separation) by Marianna Grenadier.](/sites/default/files/uploads/images/default/magis-700px.jpg)
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Variety in Diet Can Hamper Microbial Diversity in the Gut
Scientists from The University of Texas at Austin and five other institutions have discovered that the more diverse the diet of a fish, the less...
![Two stickleback fish, the type used in the study, are held in the hand of a researcher collecting them from the wild.](/sites/default/files/uploads/images/default/sticklebacks.jpg)
Trapping a Bacterium in a Laser Beam Aids Study of Biofilms
Biofilms are responsible for most chronic infections and are notoriously resilient and hard to treat.
![Two-channel fluorescence image of a stamped pattern of P. aeruginosa in an isotropic background of S. aureus at t = 6 h, after the initial pattern has developed into a localized cluster.](/sites/default/files/uploads/images/default/figure0-700x420.jpg)
Neurons in the Brain Tune into Different Frequencies for Different Spatial Memory Tasks
The findings may provide insight into the cognitive and memory disruptions seen in diseases such as schizophrenia and Alzheimer's.
![A slice of rat brain stained purple to indicate the hippocampus](/sites/default/files/uploads/images/default/hippocampus2400x1350.jpg)
Possible Explanation for Human Diseases Caused by Defective Ribosomes
A new study, which uses a genetic approach to examine this paradox, suggests ribosomopathies are caused by a sequence of mistakes at the molecular level.
![An illustration of a molecular structure with surface structures and smaller molecular structures of varying sizes floating nearby](/sites/default/files/uploads/images/default/ribosome-export-landscape_0.jpg)
Crazy Ants Dominate Fire Ants by Neutralizing Their Venom
It’s the first known example of an insect with the ability to detoxify another insect’s venom.
![One large ant with its hindquarters raised in the direction of smaller ants](/sites/default/files/uploads/images/default/gilbert_2400x1350.jpg)
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Bats Use Water Ripples to Hunt Frogs
As the male túngara frog serenades female frogs from a pond, he creates watery ripples that make him easier to target by rivals and predators...
![Ripples continue for several seconds after a male túngara frog has stopped calling. Credit: Ryan Taylor/Salisbury University.](/sites/default/files/uploads/images/default/tungara-ripple-700px_20140123-172330_1.jpg)
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Symbiotic Fungi Inhabiting Plant Roots Have Major Impact on Atmospheric Carbon
Microscopic fungi that live in plants’ roots play a major role in the storage and release of carbon from the soil into the atmosphere, according...
![An Amanita mushroom from a field site in Harvard Forest. This particular mushroom is the fruiting body of an ectomycorrhizal fungus associated with the roots of a Hemlock tree. Photo by Colin Averill.](/sites/default/files/uploads/images/default/amanita-mushroom-700px_20140106-213657_1.jpg)